When it comes to AI, Qualcomm’s betting big.
The company on Wednesday said it plans to start a venture fund to invest at least $100 million in early stage startups working on artificial intelligence. In particular, it will look at companies finding ways to do the intensive data processing on devices instead of in remote cloud systems.
Qualcomm is just the latest company to make big investments in artificial intelligence. Companies like Google have long focused on the technology, and handset giant Samsung in June said its Silicon Valley-based Samsung NEXT business had launched a new fund to invest in early-stage startups ‘solving AI problems, as well as those using AI to solve computer science problems.’
Artificial intelligence has the potential to change the way we use technology and even live. Anyone who carries a modern smartphone uses AI through Apple’s Siri or Google’s Assistant, and Amazon’s Alexa has become popular for speakers and other smart home devices. Samsung jumped into the market last year with its Bixby digital assistant that helps you control your Galaxy smartphone, TV or refrigerator.
As the world’s biggest mobile chip maker, Qualcomm hopes to get insight into the future of AI and what’s needed from its processors. It and many other semiconductor companies have been focusing on new AI chips that can rapidly process information and return results to users.
On Wednesday, Qualcomm unveiled an investment in AnyVision, a startup that developed body and facial recognition technology ‘that is both highly accurate and mitigates privacy concerns through the use of on-device AI.’